


Take Me To The Sunlight

by Zillyhoo



Category: Free!
Genre: Anxiety, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, Potential Spoilers for High Speed, Reference to High Speed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-19
Updated: 2014-10-19
Packaged: 2018-02-21 18:32:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2478266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zillyhoo/pseuds/Zillyhoo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Makoto tries to brave Samezuka's house of horror, but finds it isn't long before he needs some rescuing.</p><p>(Spoilers for the novel High Speed, please read at your own risk.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Take Me To The Sunlight

Makoto is acutely aware of the frantic beat of his heart, the rush of blood in his veins. His body is tense, his fight or flight senses fully engaged. He digs his teeth into his bottom lip, willing himself to be silent. He's still plagued by the occasional whimper, but no one comments on it. 

Hoping to ease his nerves, he takes himself away from the dark corridor, blocking out all outside sounds. The screams and yelps that echoed from down the hall, the laughter, the unfamiliar distorted voices. 

Before entering, Makoto had been introduced to the group in charge of the haunted house. He met each person out of costume, spoke to them in costume (though that was scarier), and had been assured several times that it was all in good fun and no one would be hurt. 

None of that seems to matter any longer. It's increasingly difficult for him to think rationally in the midst of an adrenaline rush. He tightens his grip on Haru's shirt, hand damp with sweat despite the cool atmosphere. His breathing is coming off as labored to him, and he soon processes that what he hears is himself panting. He inhales deeply, filling his lungs with much needed air. 

He should have turned back when he had the chance. Rei had presented him with an out, but he had refused it, insisting he would be fine. 

"Makoto." Haru's quiet voice is nearly impossible to catch, with all the noise that plagues the darkened room. But he hears it, and hearing his name fall from Haru's lips brings a familiar comfort over him, temporarily distilling his fear. 

Suddenly the freestyle swimmer is stepping back in alarm, the heel of his foot crashing down on Makoto's toes, his elbow jerking into Makoto's rib cage. A masked figure has seemingly appeared out of nowhere, and though it makes no noise, the light cast over the mask is startling. Even more unsettling is the unnatural way it moves, tilting its head in an eerily fluid motion. Makoto jerks back, wanting to put distance between him and the figure, only to feel unfamiliar hands ghost over his shoulders. 

That's all he can take before he lets out a yell, making a run for it shortly after. It's too dark to see anything, and he's so frightened that it really wouldn't have mattered if there were any lights to guide him. He runs in a blind panic, bumping into the occasional occupant. Just as he is about to slow and gather his bearings, his foot catches on a wire, sending him sprawling forward into another person. 

He rushes to apologize, but when he looks up, he looks into the bloody eye sockets of an emaciated stone figure. His hands begin to shake and soon the tremors spread along his whole body in a sickeningly familiar way. His chest tightens, cutting off his already meager air supply. When he tries to inhale, nothing happens. The more he tries to breathe, the worse things become, leaving him gasping for air that won't reach him. He's back to panting, and even that becomes a chore when his teeth begin to chatter.

"Tachibana!" The voice comes from behind him, and the light shining on the weeping figure casts just enough light to reveal Sousuke Yamazaki. There's a mask in his hand, and his intimidating form is cloaked in a black robe. Thankfully, he has the hood of his robe pushed back, making his head visible. “What do you need?" It isn't a demand, it's a question. 'What can I do to help you?' 

_Haru. I need to see Haru right now._

"H-Haru-..." The word comes out a whisper, seemingly lost in the cacophony of screams and shouts. 

"I can't find him, it's too dark and there's no telling how far in he might be. Do you want to wait outside for now?" 

Makoto nods, still struggling to regulate his breathing. Had he been braver he would have insisted they go back and take Haru with them, but as it was, he was a mess. Haru was probably enjoying himself, or tolerating things at the very least.

"Stay close to me." Before setting a pace, Sousuke cracks several glow sticks in his fist. Neon red begins to blossom, providing a weak light. Sousuke creates a necklace, which he fastens around Makoto's neck, before fitting one more for himself. He converts the remaining glow sticks into bracelets, which encircle his wrists. 

"No one will jump out at us with these," he explains. 

Makoto savors every word Sousuke speaks, preferring the rough cadence of his voice over the frightening sounds coming from behind them. When Sousuke starts to walk, Makoto's hand automatically finds the back of his robe. The sudden hold has Sousuke glancing back at him, and Makoto offers a quiet apology, but continues to grip the fabric. 

They pick their way through the tunnel at a slow pace. Makoto trusts Sousuke to be his eyes, as he has his own squeezed shut. The one hand that isn't bunched in Sousuke's robe is covering one of his ears. What he hears is a mixture of yelps, laughter, his quickened heart beat, and Sousuke's breathing. 

“Be careful when you open your eyes, it's really bright and your eyes haven't had time to adjust." 

Makoto takes that to mean they've successfully made their way to the exit, and in spite of Sousuke's warning, he opens his eyes quickly. The light is blinding, and while he struggles to see, he's greeted by blissful silence. The sunlight, though hard on his eyes, is an extremely welcome sight. 

He's surprised when Sousuke's fingertips brush his face, interrupting the stream of tears Makoto hadn't realized he was shedding. He blinks them away quickly, before giving up and rubbing the back of his hand across his eyes. 

“I'm sorry, I-...” Despite the fact that they're safely outside, away from the haunted hallways of Samezuka, his hands continue to shake. 

“You don't have to explain.” Sousuke shrugs out of the black robe and tucks his hands into his pockets, expression solemn. 

He knows he doesn't. He owes Sousuke no explanation, but for reasons unknown to him, he wants to give one. He leans his back against the building and looks up at the sky, seeking solace in the familiar view. 

“When we were kids, Haru was sick with an extremely high fever. He brushed off any concern regarding it, and even went as far as trying to fish out a friend's scarf from the river leading to our school. Well... he was in no state to do such a thing, and when I found him, Haru was...” Makoto's heart clenched at the memory and he suddenly felt dizzy. “He was drowning... Rin and I managed to pull him out, but we just barely made it.” 

“You're probably wondering what all of this has to do with a haunted house.” Makoto gave a weak smile. Sousuke didn't return it, and the intense look in his eyes made Makoto feel as if he were stripped bare. 

“The fear you felt inside reminded you of how you felt that day.” The answer startled Makoto. He gave a slight nod to confirm Sousuke's statement, though he was baffled as to how the butterfly swimmer had come to the conclusion. “Rin mentioned that story to me. He said that you were the one who arranged everything, the ambulance, making sure Nanase's parents were informed, calling the school...” 

“I didn't actually call...” 

“No, but you arranged it all and that's as good as doing it yourself. You kept a cool head even though you were panicked. Don't down play your accomplishments.” 

Makoto isn't sure if he would call it an accomplishment, but Sousuke is being earnest with him and he respects that, so he decides to take it as it is. Just as he's thinking this, Sousuke curls his fingers around one of his trembling hands. 

“Rin said that your voice was as steady as a rock, but you were shaking all over.” Makoto looks down at his feet quickly, embarrassed by the sudden contact that Sousuke is giving him. The two have hardly spoken a word to each other, and in all honesty, Sousuke intimidated Makoto on some level. He never expected the teal eyed man to be so gentle. 

As if realizing how strange the touch is, Sousuke pulls his hand back suddenly, tucking it in his pocket once more. 

Makoto longs to reach after him, but he doesn't know Sousuke well enough to act on it. He doesn't have time to dwell on it, as the door beside him opens, revealing his swim team. 

“Makoto-Senpai! I'm so sorry! Had I known you would be so frightened, I would have never insisted you come with us.” Rei twists his hands nervously, purple eyes full of concern. 

Makoto rushes to hide his hands behind him, not wanting to alarm Rei further by revealing the way his hands are shaking. ...Were shaking. He looks down at them, surprised to find that the trembling has ceased. 

“Rei-Chan, you're going to embarrass him by talking about it. If you want to make him feel better, tell him how you screamed and made your voice crack when I jumped out at you!” Nagisa lifts his arms suddenly and lets out a little 'boo!' for an added affect. 

“Anyone would be frightened of a robed figure with a mask jumping out at them! It's perfectly reasonable to react in such a manner.” 

While the two squabble, Haru drifts closer to Makoto, silently appraising him. 

“Are you okay?” 

“I'm fine now, Haru. Sousuke helped me find my way out.” The fact that Makoto had switched from Yamazaki to Sousuke didn't escape Haru's notice, but Makoto feigned ignorance to the lift of Haru's eyebrows. He turns his attention back to Sousuke, feeling immensely grateful for all that the teal eyed man has done for him. “Thank you, Sousuke...” 

“No problem. ...But I should head back now.” He looks Makoto over once more, and when he's sure that Makoto is himself again, he gives a brief wave before letting himself back inside the building. 

“He still seems unapproachable,” Rei murmured once Sousuke was gone. “Well, shall we go in and wait for Rin-San? He was really worried about Makoto-Senpai, but evidently too many helpers were coming and going and they became short staffed.” Rei gives Nagisa a pointed look, but the cheery blonde pays no attention to it. 

“Are you coming, Makoto?” Haru looks up at him, and Makoto can see he's still worried. 

“I'll be in shortly, I just want to take a minute to catch my breath.” 

“Okay. We'll wait in the lobby for you.” Makoto smiles and nods, watching as Haru and Rei make their way back inside. He's surprised to see that Nagisa makes no move to follow them. 

“Aren't you going with them, Nagisa? You shouldn't play hooky if you volunteered to help.” 

“I'll go inside soon,” Nagisa promised, rocking back and forth on his heels as he spoke. “That was nice of Sousuke-Chan to use all of his glow sticks for you!” 

“Eh? What do you mean all of them?” 

Nagisa rustles around his robes until he produces several unbroken glow sticks. 

“We each have a set of these in case something goes wrong! When you see the red glowing, you aren't supposed to yell or do anything scary. Ai-Chan had to use one earlier, but Sousuke used his whole set for you!” Nagisa grins, oblivious to what his words have just told Makoto. 

His heart begins to race again, but this time it isn't out of fear.

**Author's Note:**

> My teeny tiny contribution for SouMako week, the best week of the year. ♥


End file.
